Shadow Slave | School Days

With the new events of the chapter, how do you think Jet got there? And more importantly, what direction do you want Cassie and Nephis' character to take.

--

Metallic walls loomed under flickering fluorescent lights, casting sharp, jagged shadows that danced across the sterile floor. A pungent mix of antiseptic and something metallic clung to the air, choking out any sense of warmth and comfort.

Two onyx black orbs were revealed to the world, taking in the sights and smells without restraint. Hysteria crept into his soul, attempting to break free at the slightest moment as he grit his teeth to keep himself silent. He was only nine, yet his display of mental restraint quickly came loose as he noticed the animals laying across from him.

"Get me out of here! Hey, you! Please, I'm sorry if I did anything wrong just let me go!" the boy screamed. The frail boy lay strapped to a bed, wrists and ankles bound with thick leather restraints that bit into malnourished skin. Dark hair clung to his damp forehead, his wide, hollow eyes darting towards the two figures who stood just out of view.

Massive, feral shapes occupied the beds beside him, their monstruous forms barely contained by metal frames. Gnarled claws twitched against reinforced straps, muscles spasmed beneath coarse fur, and jaws filled with jagged teeth remained locked open as though mid-snarl.

Some growled in their forced sleep, deep, guttural sounds that made the walls tremble. "Somebody! Anybody! Please, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry please just let me go!" The boy wailed, and yet his pleas for safety were only met with a cloth being pressed over his mouth, rendering him unconscious in moments.

Two figures stood at the foot of the boy's bed, draped in pristine white coats. Long, flowing hair of the same stark shade framed their masked faces, obscuring any hint of emotion. The woman tilted her head slightly, her gloved fingers ghosting over the boy's trembling arm.

Testing his reaction.

Suddenly, she backed away. The two figures moved in unison, turning towards a camera as they both released a simultaneous tired sigh. Flexing his shoulders, the man ran a gloved hand through his hair as he prepared himself to spit out words he wished he didn't need to say.

"This marks another experiment on our perfect vessel. I've forgotten how many of these I've done by now. We are attempting to replicate the aggressive killing instincts that animals possess into him, after all, there is no use for a perfect weapon if the wielder is too afraid to use it."

The man paused, staring at his female companion expectantly, wishing for her to speak in his stead as his hands trembled further, his voice wavering as he attempted to mask it with confident speech and intuitive analogies. None of it did much to hide his fear. Stepping forward, she too ran a hand through her hair, seeming far more confident than her father.

"His name appears to be Sunless. But that doesn't matter, since we took him in and he became our first success he is no longer a person, so he does not need a name. With this, hopefully, we can eventually kill his sense of pain as he grows older, forcing him into the emotionless weapon that our daughter can wield with complete efficiency."

She paused, staring at the ceiling for a moment.

"We're in too deep, far too deep into this shit. It isn't much time until Valor or Asterion himself arrives to kill us for our knowledge. We know it isn't soon, but it will come. So, we need a way out, these recordings are our truth, they will be our truth. We will keep our daughter safe even if we don't live to see her smile. It's funny too, she's only a year older than this thing."

The video ended there, leaving silence permeating through the clearing. Sunny didn't know when exactly he had begun gripping his knife, murderous intent spilling from his body as he stared distantly into the sky. 'No, I'm nobody's weapon. This rage I'm feeling... it's all theirs. They designed me to feel this way.'

Sunny stared at his hands, opening and closing them with a blank expression on his face as he sheathed his knife. 'All my rage, all my hatred, they're all just manufactured by the people I hate the most. Do I even really hate Morgan? Am I just a tool, destined for violence?'

Shaking his head, Sunny's eyes focused, he felt a hand coil around his own, grasping it firmly into her palm and yet his mind was too focused elsewhere to even feel afraid. "I'm not a weapon, I'm not violent, once this war is over... I'll never take a life again. Yes... that is my choice, my decision, not theirs!"

His silent declaration rang out under the sun, he was a man born in darkness and shrouded in it his entire life, and yet still the warmth of the sun was oddly comforting.

Turning to the side, he noticed Jessica's hand wrapped around his own, which she quickly removed upon feeling his gaze. Her expression quickly shifted from embarrassed to hardened as she gripped her sword. "Shall I go kill Changing Star?" She asked, her voice steeled with intent and determination.

Sunny didn't respond immediately, staring at the clouds almost with contemplation as he allowed a sad smile to settle on his face. "An unfeeling machine, an emotionless weapon, does denying me humanity run in the family?" He mumbled, staring at the sky blankly as Nephis' smiling face came into view.

"No, she hasn't done anything wrong yet. I'd like to be charitable and say it's because she wasn't raised here but she's killed people. She's killed people because I was too weak to preserve her innocence." He commented wistfully, the glimmer of innocence that was once in her eyes had died. It didn't dim her beauty in the slightest, but it brought things into perspective.

"This isn't your fault you idiot; you can stop blaming yourself." Jessica commented, her voice slightly annoyed as she got up, gesturing to the wooden house which appeared nearly fully built. "Let's finish the rest, we can't be slacking off while they do all the work!" She exclaimed, her bright smile all encompassing.

It was moments like these, where he was at his lowest and still had people ready to pick him up. That made him glad he was alive.

--

Staring at the woman with a dumbfounded expression, Cassie and Nephis' mind shut down. It was unfathomable for quite a variety of reasons, not only had neither of them been able to sense Jet for the entirety of their fight with that abominable horse, but her killing efficiency was... abnormal.

Jet wasn't supposed to be strong, after Noctis had taken her, he had expected for her to be sent back to her regular life, never speaking of what had happened and living out the rest of her days in complete and total peace. Instead, here she was living actively in the most harrowing region of the world.

"What are you doing here, Jet?" Cassie asked, her tone still wavering from shock as Eubin began to calmly walk over to her. "What are you doing!?" Exclaimed Nephis, noticing Eubin had immediately closed the distance and moving between the two of them.

Instead of walking to Jet, Eubin simply moved past her like she didn't exist, collecting the body of the dead horse with a pleased expression in her wires before dusting her hands. "Phew, if that fight went on any longer, I would have had to try for once in my life." She sighed, dragging the horse along with ease.

Jet's eyes quickly snapped in her direction, swinging her scythe dangerously before pointing it directly at Eubin. "I killed the thing, so I get the food." She commented, her tone cold and unpleasant as she continued, not even bothering to spare Cassie and Nephis a glance. "We'll talk later, once I've gotten my food."

Eubin stared at her with a raised eyebrow, almost tempted to take the woman up on her unspoken challenge before sighing. "Look, if you want to take Sunny's food, be my guest. But do you think you'll survive that?" She asked, stressing his name for dramatic effect as she noticed the woman pale slightly.

"I'm not fighting that kid, I'd rather die. But how am I supposed to trust a word that comes out of your mouth?" She asked, her gaze still remaining sceptical as her grip on the scythe tightened. Instead of replying, Eubin simply pulled out her phone, showing a picture of herself and Sunny striking poses as she wore his clothes.

Thankfully, that was all the proof Jet needed as her grip on the scythe relaxed. "Well, I'm coming with you, I'm not letting my work go unrewarded. I'll have you know, I've been trying to kill that thing every day for a whole month!" She exclaimed comedically, following along as Eubin silently walked past her.

Finally, Nephis broke the silence as they continued to move through the forest, with far less stealth than usual. "Why aren't they attacking us?" She asked to nobody in particular, although, she hoped Eubin would give an answer which could slowly lead to a conversation.

"We killed the apex predator here, so they recognise the four of us as apex predators. And thus, they're too pussy to actually fight us." Eubin commented, not turning around for even a moment as they broke the tree line. A multitude of heads snapped in their direction, a pleasant smile arriving on Sunny's face as he walked over to them.

"Finally, that fucking horse is dead. It's a shame I couldn't kill it." He mumbled to himself, ignoring everyone but Eubin's gaze entirely as he offered her a smile. "You could have gone after anything else, but you chose the house sized horse? Specifically, the one I have history with. I think thanks are in order."

Cupping her hand to her ear, she leaned in with a smile. "Come on then, let me hear it. 'Oh my gosh Eubin you did so well, may I marry you?'" She sang, a mocking tone in her voice as she glanced back at Nephis. Sunny simply stared at her with a teasing smile of his own before pulling out a knife.

"I said thanks are in order, not that I would thank you. Greedy woman." He joked, kneeling down to cut the horse's corpse free before he noticed the odd gaze that Jet was giving him. Upon noticing her presence, Sunny's expression became clouded in shock as his eyes quickly narrowed.

"What are you doing here...Jet?"